Aljazeera: London showcases Arab filmmakers

Aljazeera: London showcases Arab filmmakers

Hoping to raise the profile of contemporary Arab cinema in Britain, London’s British Academy of Film and Television Arts has launched the first annual Arab Film Weekend to both accolades and criticism. Screening eight films – all made in the past two years – from Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Morocco and Algeria. The festival was arranged “to provide a showcase for the diversity and the breadth of creativity that exists within the Arab world,” Ali Jaafar, one of the festival’s programmers, said. Saeed Taji Farouky reports.